Hugh Freezes Bryan Harsin in Talent Acquisition

Former Auburn Head Coach Bryan Harsin had a less-than-desirable recruiting ethic. In 2021, the Auburn Tigers finished in 7th place in the SEC, and 19th overall for recruiting classes. That is the WORST finish since 2008 where they finished, once again, 19th.

In the transfer portal, they only succeeded in picking up nine new players with only four new impact players.

Demetris Robertson (Wide-Receiver- Georgia)

Bydarrius Knighten (Safety-Southeastern Missouri State)

Donovan Kaufman (Cornerback-Vanderbilt)

Eku Leota (Edge-Rusher-Northwestern)

In 2022 Bryan Harsin continued his unfortunate tenure by finishing even worse at 21st in the country, and 9th in the SEC, although he was a little more successful in the transfer portal. Picking up 10 players with 5 being impact players.

Robby Ashford (Quarterback-Oregon)

Marcus Bragg (Defesnive Line-WKU)

Jayson Jones (Defensive Line-Oregon)

DJ James (Cornerback-Oregon)

And Koy Moore (Wide-Receiver- LSU)

Coach Hugh Freeze knows the importance of the transfer portal and got to work QUICKLY, in only 6 ½ months the Tigers have pulled in the number 3 transfer class in the Nation, along with the 18th recruiting class.

That may look like a bad class, but with only 6 ½ months' worth of being the Head Coach for the Auburn Tigers that doesn’t give recruits a lot of time to decide if they want to jump onto an uneasy ship.

It is a tad early to be deciding who the impact players will be for this class, but if you want to keep an eye out for anyone it needs to be.

Shane Hooks (WR, Jackson State)

In 2022 Shane Hooks led the Jackson State Tigers in completions (64 completions), receiving yards (748 yards), and touchdown completions (10 TDs) along with earning all SWAC second team honors.

Nick Mardner (WR- Cincinnati)

In 2021 with Hawaii Nick Mardner led the team with receiving yards (913 yards), longest completion (79-yard reception), and receiving touchdowns (5 TD’s). He is a 6’6, 215-pound receiver that you can trust to go out and win the 50/50 balls

Rivaldo Fairweather (Tight End-FIU)

In 2022 Fairweather was 2nd on the team in receiving yards (426 yards), 2nd in yards per completion (15.2 YPC), and had the longest completion (75 yards). As a tight end, he was an incredible pass catcher for the Panthers shown by the stats.

Jalen McLeod (Linebacker- App State)

In 2022 McLeod was 2nd on the team in sacks (6 sacks), and 1st on the team in sack yards (32 SYDS).

Larry Nixon (Linebacker- North Texas)

In 2022 Nixon was 2nd on the team in total tackles (104). Nixon has 4 years of college experience, so this addition puts a veteran on the field to help everyone mold in place.

Another name that has gone severely under the radar...

Brian Battie

In 2022 Battie led the Bulls in Rushing yards (1,186 7ards), longest rushing attempt (68-yard rush), and rushing touchdowns (8 rushing TDs) and was 2nd in yards per carry (6.7 YPC).

Brian Battie is the only current Auburn Tiger to have had a 1,000-yard rushing season.

With nobody knowing exactly how long star Jarquez Hunter will be suspended, Battie will have a huge part in the Tiger's offense. I'm most excited about the complete turnaround in the trenches.

I know I've been talking about all of the big star players off the ball, but the biggest accomplishment this off-season has been the rebuilding of the offensive line. The fact they are adding depth along with the 5 projected new starters is huge for the Tigers.

For the 2024 recruiting class, Auburn is ranked in the top 30, sitting at 29th, which is the highest for any first-year head coach in the nation, except for Luke Fickle at Wisconsin (14th) and Troy Taylor at Stanford (9th).

Auburn fans, all I'm saying is bundle up! The Freeze Era is in full effect, so sit back and enjoy!